The Hurricanes finished Day No. 10 of preseason camp on Friday at Greentree Field.
Some notes:
*** Defensive end Al-Quadin Muhammad and linebacker Jermaine Grace both were at practice.
*** Behind Brad Kaaya at quarterback during our 15 minutes of media viewing were redshirt sophomore Malik Rosier, followed by redshirt freshman Evan Shirreffs, true freshman Jack Allison and redshirt freshman Vincent Testaverde.
Mark Richt said he still hasn’t decided on a backup.
“That’s kind of where it’s at,” said Richt’s son, Jon, the quarterbacks coach. “All those guys are competing. They’re working hard. They’re trying to get better every day. But right now there’s no clear No. 2 or No. 3.”
Here’s Jon’s assessment of last year’s backup Malik Rosier: “Some of it is him getting used to our system. It’s a completely different feel, a completely different way to go. But he’s doing a good job right now of coming up. He’s got to be more consistent. That’s our big thing with him. He’s got to come in play in and play out. We’re putting a lot on our quarterbacks and they’ve got to know what they’re supposed to do and what not to do.”
*** Mark Richt on the team’s first-year receivers: “Dayall [Harris] is farther ahead. Ahmmon [Richards] is in pretty decent shape, and there’s [Sam] Bruce, by virtue of the fact that he got here later than everybody else… We have some first-year tight ends, too, that have a ways to go, just learning what to do. There’s so much to master as a tight end in this system. They’re struggling a little bit mentally. When you’re not sure, it’s hard to be physical. The young guys in general are struggling, but Dayall and Ahmmon are a little bit further ahead at receiver.”
***On the absence of tight end Stan Dobard, S Robert Knowles and FB Gage Batten from practice: “Stan had an ankle thing. I think Stan’s was an ankle. Knowles, it could have been a hand. He had something to do with his finger — it got jacked up a little bit. [Batten’s surgery] went well, but it will be a little while before he can practice.”
*** Running back great Edgerrin James attended practice Friday. James’ nephew Jeff James is a freshman safety out of Orlando Olympia High…By the way, Richt said there will not be just one featured back this season.
*** CanesFest is from 5 to 7 p.m. Saturday at the BankUnited Center. Football players and coaches will sign autographs from 5:30 to 6:30 in the multipurpose room. A voucher is required for autographs, and will be distributed beginning at 4:30 on a first-come, first-served basis.
Jon, Jadyn and Seantrel Henderson
Miami Hurricanes quarterbacks coach Jon Richt, if you didn’t know by now, is the son of head coach Mark Richt, who told us in the spring that “I think most people are calling him Coach Jon. It’s CMR on my underwear and CJR on his.”
Jon Richt spoke to reporters Friday about his quarterbacks, his dad and his daughter, 2-year-old Jadyn, who is progressing in her battle with Crohn’s Disease. (Here’s my story I posted Friday afternoon)
According to the Crohn’s & Colitis Foundation of America, Crohn’s Disease belongs to a group of conditions known as Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD). Crohn’s disease is a chronic inflammatory condition of the gastrointestinal tract.
The young Richt, 26, is as pleasant and upbeat as they come, and it’s nice to see him and CMR and their families together again.
“It was great to know that he had the faith in me at such an early age to get the job done,” Jon said of his dad. “His trust means a lot to me.”
Jon, on whether he knew that he wanted to be a quarterbacks coach:
“At first, yes. I thought I was going to do that. once I got older — I actually got married as a sophomore in college — I kind of got the picture that once I got older, I wasn’t going to be around as much [if I were a coach], so I tried to do something else first and that lasted about five months. I was in the mortgage business for about five months and then very soon after that I was back on the field coaching and working with some guys from the NFL Combine — so it wasn’t long.
“I knew what I wanted to do. I love it. The hours don’t matter when you are doing something that you love to do, so that’s what it is all about.”
Jon acknowledged that little Jadyn has helped rejuvenate her grandfather, who was fired from Georgia late last year after one of the most illustrious coaching tenures in the nation.
SUSAN MILLER DEGNAN